Motor nucleus of the trigeminal nerve

Last revised by Frank Gaillard on 14 Mar 2022

The motor nucleus of the trigeminal nerve is the only motor nucleus of the four main trigeminal nerve nuclei.

Gross anatomy

The motor nucleus is a paired structure located within the mid-to-upper pons (tegmentum). It lies anteromedial to the main sensory nucleus and adjacent to the lateral aspect of the floor of the fourth ventricle.

Innervation

The motor nucleus of the trigeminal nerve houses the cell bodies that innervate all of the muscles derived from the first pharyngeal arch. These include the muscles of mastication (lateral pterygoid, medial pterygoid, masseter and temporalis muscles) in addition to tensor tympani, tensor veli palatini, mylohyoid and the anterior belly of the digastric muscles 1.

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